India’s voter-roll purge sparks protests before key state election
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Voting for the West Bengal state assembly is scheduled in two phases starting on April 23, with results due on May 4.
PHOTO: EPA
NEW DELHI – More than nine million people have been struck off the voter rolls in an eastern Indian state governed by a regional rival of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), triggering protests and allegations of electoral malpractice days before the voting begins.
The Election Commission of India put out district-wide details of eligible voters in West Bengal last week that showed the proportion of removal of electors at around 11.85 per cent, according to the Press Trust of India.
Voting for West Bengal state assembly is scheduled in two phases starting on April 23, with results due on May 4.
The special intensive revision in West Bengal has become a political flashpoint, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee approaching the Supreme Court, the first by a sitting state leader, to halt the exercise.
India’s Election Commission is facing growing scrutiny after launching a nationwide voter roll revision to remove ineligible names, a move opposition parties say could disproportionately affect minority voters.
The dispute has intensified a stand-off between the government and its critics, raising concerns about the poll body’s transparency and independence ahead of state elections.
Mr Modi’s party has been trying to make gains in West Bengal for years and has been campaigning on illegal immigration from neighbouring Muslim-majority Bangladesh.
Opposition leaders and activists have accused BJP of using the poll body to help the ruling party by striking opposition voters from the rolls and adding fake voters to bolster support.
Both the BJP and the poll body have denied the accusations.
In February, about 5.8 million were removed in an initial draft, with another six million voters’ rights under review.
The state has 64.6 million registered voters, according to a presentation by the poll body in March.
Protests, stalled Parliament sessions and legal challenges in courts over alleged voter fraud have persisted for months.
The Election Commission’s rejection of the allegations and delays in the appeals process has further frustrated voters and opposition leaders.
Last week, the Supreme Court declined to set a deadline for voter appeals, a decision West Bengal’s ruling All India Trinamool Congress said could deny nearly two million people the right to vote in the upcoming election. BLOOMBERG
